• Saturday, October 25th, 10 am to 2 pm - Pumpkin Decorating: We'll supply the googly eyes, sparkles, glitter, and many additional decorations. Pick and purchase a pumpkin and then go for it!
• Sunday, November 2nd, 9 am - 11 am - Bird Watching at the Farm: Bring your binoculars and join us and our birding guide for a walk around the farm identifying our feathered friends. $20 per person will go to the Audubon Society. Limited to 20 persons. Please sign up at the farm.
• Saturday, December 6th, 11 am - 1:00 pm - Holiday Wreath-making: We provide the wreath frame and loads of fresh foliage, berries, and evergreens as materials for your wreath. $25 per person. Event limited to 20 persons. Sign up at the farm.

We will be OPEN!

Looks like tomorrow will be a rainy morning, but tapering off by opening time.

Check out that huge pumpkin! Our avocado grower, Dave Righetti, grows at least one gargantuan pumpkin every year and then allows us to show it off at the farm. In the photo above, Dave steadies the pumpkin as Farmer Ariela uses our small tractor to set that baby in place. You'll find it next to our hill of pumpkins by the stand entrance. Guess the weight of this big guy (within 50 pounds) and you get a free (regular size) pumpkin. It's harder than you think! According to modernfarmer.com, the majority of giant pumpkins are descended from a single variety called "Dill's Atlantic Giant." And in fact, this is the same seed that Dave Righetti uses.

Preparation begins in the fall by heaping up a big mound of cow manure in a sunny bed and planting a cover crop or just covering the manure with straw. This preps the soil with plenty of food for its big task the following spring. After planting a seedling (or two or three), it's time to baby that baby. Keep it warm. Protect it from drafts. Feed it regularly. Remove weeds. Keep all pests away! Modern farmer also suggests removing all the flower buds until the vine is about ten feet long. This keeps the green foliage big and vigorous - an essential component for the plant to feed its fruit. Once the vine is ten feet long, you allow several blossoms to fruit and then, after several weeks of growth, keep the largest fruit and remove all the others. Now you have your one big pumpkin to care for, and there's plenty to do. Shade it. Keep extra vines to a minimum length. Fertilize and water your plant. And finally, finally somehow get that sucker on a scale to weigh it! Hmmm...I'll have to ask Dave how he accomplished that feat! In the meantime, come on by and make your guess. I wonder how many pumpkin pies we could make with that giant...

The broccoli and cauliflower harvest is picking up, and we should have enough to remain stocked most of the day. Leeks, beets, fennel and celery root are plentiful. Our carrots have lost their tops! But we'll have plenty of loose carrots tomorrow - same great sweet flavor. Winter squash are in, cured and ready to eat. They will just get sweeter from here on out. Spinach is still on hiatus, and we'll be cilantro-free for a couple of weeks - too small to harvest yet, but they will get there eventually! More citrus has come in for the week. Enjoy the last of the Murcott tangerines or pick up some juicy, refreshing Valencia oranges. Seckel pears are also wrapping up shortly, but we continue to have the green and red d'Anjou pears. Apples, apples, and more apples keep appearing! We received our last box of jujubes for the season. Get 'em while we have them! Come on down to the farm. There may be a drip or two, but it's worth it!

-Eileen

Tuesday, October 14, 2024

Harvest Bag

all for $20

____

Leeks

Carrots

Sweet Cornitos Peppers

Red Beets

Kabocha Squash (see recipes)

Zucchini

Jicama

Salad Mix

Avocados (Righetti Ranch, San Luis Obispo)

Vegan Thai Curry Recipe With Kabocha Squash and Coconut

Ingredients

• 1 medium kabocha squash de-seeded and cut into chunks
• 2 cups coconut milk the creamy kind
• 1-2 tablespoon coconut oil
• 1 medium size onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 Cornitos peppers, sliced
• 1 bunch kale, chopped
• 1 cup green beans,chopped
• 1 teaspoon to 1 tablespoon (if you like it hotter) Thai curry paste
• 1 teaspoon curry powder
• 2 cups chickpeas cooked
• 1 teaspoon hot chili sauce (optional)
• salt to taste
• 1/2 cup cilantro or parsley, finely chopped
• toasted pumpkin seeds or toasted seeds of the kabocha squash
• coconut flakes
• brown rice or Thai roti bread for serving

Directions

1. To prepare the kabocha squash, you’ll first want to cut it open with a sturdy and sharp knife. Scoop out the seeds and set them in a bowl if you plan on toasting them for your garnish. Then cut the squash into one-inch chunks and steam in a steaming basket over boiling water until tender. Divide the squash in half. Peel half of the chunks and place them in a blender with the coconut milk, blending until smooth. Peel the other half as well, and set aside in a bowl.
2. Next, sauté the onions and garlic in a pan with the coconut oil until slightly brown, and then add the bell pepper, kale, and green beans, cooking until tender. Then add the curry paste and let it blend. In the meantime you’ll want to heat up the coconut milk and kabocha squash puree in a large pot. Once simmering, add the sautéed vegetables, kabocha squash chunks, curry powder, hot sauce, salt, and chickpeas to the pot and let simmer on the lowest heat for at least an hour. (Keep in mind that curry often tastes better the next day.)
3. Serve the curry either with cooked brown rice or Thai roti bread (which deliciously soaks up the favors of the curry), or a bed of uncooked kale if you happen to have some left over.
4. Garnish the curry with fresh cilantro, pumpkin (or kabocha squash) seeds and coconut flakes. Enjoy!

Adapted from https://www.organicauthority.com

Halcyon Farms | 1075 The Pike in Arroyo Grande | www.halcyonfarmsag.com